Letters to the editor

Thank you for highlighting the horrific apathy of the government on air pollution in Delhi.

Published: April 3, 2015 12:14 am

Letter of the Week AwardTo encourage quality reader intervention The Indian Express offers the Letter of the Week Award. The letter adjudged the best for the week is published every Saturday. Letters may be e-mailed to editpage @expressindia.com or sent to The Indian Express, 9&10, Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi -110002.

Simmer down now
This refers to ‘Look again at the Middle East’ (IE, April 2) by C. Raja Mohan. A nuclear deal with Iran could become President Barack Obama’s enduring legacy. But a nuclear-capable Iran would result in an even more crisis-prone Middle East, a potential nuclear arms race in the region and an increased risk of nuclear war against Israel. The much-touted curtailment of Iran’s uranium enrichment programme has been questioned by the IAEA in its report on July 11, 2014, which noted that the Islamic republic was contravening its obligations to suspend enrichment-related activities. The agency also expressed concerns about the possible existence of undisclosed nuclear installations in Iran. The reduction of crude prices is just a tangential benefit for India. It doesn’t justify the writer’s over-the-top exuberance about the negotiations.
— Ajay Tyagi
Mumbai

Shameful minister
It is shameful that the BJP has members like Giriraj Singh, who has no sense of how to speak in polite society (‘Giriraj gem again: Had Rajiv married Nigerian, would she be leader?’, IE, April 2). What could possibly have prompted the minister to make such a deplorable personal comment against Sonia Gandhi? By indirectly saying that the Congress party has accepted Gandhi as its leader because of her being fair-skinned, he has insulted not only the president of a respected national party but also one of our most graceful, self-contained and respected leaders. Gandhi entered politics unwillingly, when the Congress party was in distress. The Nigerian high commissioner’s rap on the knuckles over the minister’s racist comment should rightly embarrass the Indian government.
— M.C. Joshi
Lucknow

Airpocalypse now
This refers to ‘Death by breath’ (IE, April 2). The Indian Express deserves to be richly complimented for its ongoing investigative series. But so far, the series has not focused attention on possible remedial measures to improve air quality in the city. The government must act now. This is a matter of life and death.
— B.N. Anand
Mohali

Thank you for highlighting the horrific apathy of the government on air pollution in Delhi. It is criminal that the gains made in improving air quality have been frittered away. I do wonder whether anything positive will come out of this series, though, or if our leaders are past being shamed into action. Also, Delhi is not the only city facing this problem. It may be the worst affected but it certainly isn’t the only one. Mumbai must come a close second thanks to rampant “development” (I use the term loosely). It would be great if a similar series could be done for other metros.
— Gauri Kelkar
Mumbai